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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. season — in sport
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. kid — child
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. mine — for digging
  7. can — to be able to
  8. fine — high quality
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. drill — army training
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — to tease
  13. can — a tin
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. drill — the tool
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. can — a tin
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. fine — all right
  23. drill — a practice
  24. season — of the year

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com